America's Most Dangerous Jobs
Laura Morsch, CareerBuilder.com writer
For most of us, the workplace can certainly be stressful, but it's hardly life-threatening. The typical worker has a low risk dying from a work-related injury – the fatality rate for all occupations is 4.1 per 100,000 employed, according to the U.S. Department of Labor's Bureau of Labor Statistics.

But stress can take on a whole new meaning for workers in some industries, who literally risk their lives each day to bring the rest of us basic needs like food and electricity.

In 2004, highway incidents, falls, being struck by a falling object and homicide were the four leading causes of work-related fatalities. The riskiest industries were those in which the workers were frequently threatened by these events:

Within these and other industry groups, certain occupations saw fatality rates reach as high as 22 times the national average. The BLS lists these occupations, all of which had a minimum of 30 fatalities and 40,000 people employed in 2004, as 10 of the most dangerous in the nation:

1. Logging workers
Fatalities: 92.4 per 100,000 employed
Median pay: $30,080
Logging and timber workers duties include cutting down trees and cutting and moving logs, providing the raw material for countless products. The nature of their work puts them at constant risk of being killed by heavy, falling objects.

2. Aircraft pilots and flight engineers
Fatalities: 92.4 per 100,000 employed
Median pay: $135,430 – but may be much lower for commercial pilots.
Although aircraft pilots and flight engineers have one of the most dangerous jobs in the nation, don't swear off air travel just yet. This category also includes commercial pilots of smaller aircrafts – including crop dusters and air taxis – that are far more likely to crash than your typical 747.

3. Fishers and related workers
Fatalities: 86.4 per 100,000 employed
Median Pay: $28,220
Fishers endure storms, fog, wind and hazardous working conditions before bringing you the fresh salmon on your dinner plate. Perilous weather puts fishers at risk of drowning if their boat capsizes or they fall overboard. And if they suffer serious injuries while at sea, help isn't readily available.

4. Structural iron and steel workers
Fatalities: 47 per 100,000 employed
Median pay: $42,410
These workers climb dozens of stories to lay the iron and steel that form buildings, bridges and other structures. Despite strapping on harnesses and other safety gear, structural iron and steel workers face a high risk of fatal injuries from falls.

5. Refuse and recyclable material collectors
Fatalities: 43.2 per 100,000 employed
Median pay: $26,950
When refuse and recyclable material collectors take away your trash, they risk traffic accidents and fatal injuries from explosions of hazardous materials. According to a University of Miami study, the leading cause of on-the-job fatalities for these workers is impatient motorists who try to pass the garbage truck and hit the driver.

6. Farmers and ranchers
Fatalities: 37.5 per 100,000 employed
Median pay: $38,600
Farmers and ranchers raise animals and plant, cultivate and harvest crops used to produce our food. However, the tractors and machinery used by these workers can be very dangerous: Non-highway vehicle accidents accounted for 40 percent of occupational fatalities for farmers and ranchers in 2004.

7. Roofers
Fatalities: 34.9 per 100,000 employed
Median pay: $31,300
When these workers climb atop your house to build or repair your roof, they risk slipping or falling from scaffolds, ladders, or roofs, or burning themselves on hot bitumen.

8. Electrical power-line installers and repairers
Fatalities: 30 per 100,000 employed
Median pay: $49,700
When your lights go out, line installers and repairers climb power poles and towers to get your electricity up and running. Power lines are typically high off the ground, so workers are at high risk of injury due to falls. Plus, these workers are often at risk of electrocution from contact with the high-voltage power lines.

9. Driver/sales workers and truck drivers
Fatalities: 27.6 per 100,000 employed
Truck driver median pay: $33,870
Driver/sales worker median pay: $20,320
Truck drivers transport goods including cars and livestock, and driver/sales workers deliver and sell their firm's products over established routes. Both groups spend the majority of their time on the road, putting them at high risk of highway vehicle crashes.

10. Taxi drivers and chauffeurs
Fatalities: 24.2 per 100,000 employed
Median pay: $19,790
The dangers of shuttling around patrons go far beyond highway crashes. Taxi drivers, who often work alone and carry large amounts of cash, may also find themselves victims of robbery and homicide.

Laura Morsch is a writer for CareerBuilder.com. She researches and writes about job search strategy, career management, hiring trends and workplace issues.

loodvig

07-12-2006, 07:07 AM

That's great. Before I got into this trade I was in the iron workers union. I was just out of the army and needed work. Back then who knew?

thrasher

07-12-2006, 10:33 AM

Topgroove:
I have seen similar reports before and I wholeheartedly agree ours is a dangerous business. There are things we have no control over, like the drunk that runs off the road and hits the crewman on the jobsite, or the brand new transformer that blows up the first time it's energized, or (my personnal favorite) 34.5kv metering CT's that blow up for no reason, and especially the weather.
The real problem is we are still losing men to the same things that we did fifty years ago. We lose men to no gloves in the energized zone, no coverup on the other potentials in the work area, not using red-tags, not correctly using grounds, cave-ins of ditches. All of these things should have stopped being a problem years ago. I honestly don't know the answer. When I hear of a 19 year old journeyman then I know the problem is no training. But we lose journeymen that have been doing the job for 10, 20, even 30 years. DO we get complacent? Do we think I've cut this corner before and nothing happened. I don't know the answer. I'm in management now and would love to know what gets the message across. I use the info from this site in almost every Safety Meeting. Our Coop preaches and disciplines by our rule book. However it still sits in the back of my mind that I may have to go to someone's wife someday and tell them thier husband isn't coming home. That is not what I hired on to do. So far this Coop has never had a work related fatality, the most serious injury in the last 15 years has been a shattered ankle. I would love to hear from still working linemen. WHAT makes the most impression for doing a job safely and by the numbers?

Trampbag

07-12-2006, 01:06 PM

You have to read this report for what it is. Aside from aircraft pilots, flight engineers and utility workers none of the workers listed are highly trained skilled trades personnel.

Arguably the steel workers are the only others that are skilled, but would come no where near the training involved with the above.

The aircraft industry is highly regulated and when an accident happens the Authorities seal the site and investigate unimpeded, upon great pain, by anyone other than the Authority. Decisions made by this investigating body are binding and the Authority can revoke licences should there be any improprieties, irregularities or violations to the regulations. Businesses would not dare to try influence any investigation into an accident and would certainly NEVER be allowed to investigate itself.

In agriculture safety is low as is compliance to any regulations. Child labor laws are violated all the time, child deaths on farms are extremely high, but then so is adult fatalities. This is mostly due to lack of training and the extreme difficulties policing this industry. How do you police a family farm?

The rest of the “jobs” listed are low skilled or semi skilled at best. The one I would have to question is the mining industry. I cannot understand where or how these statistics were complied.

Our trade, which is covered by both utility and construction statistics, is unique in that most employees are qualified trades personnel who have served at least a three year apprenticeship. Those in apprenticeship are required to be under direct supervision of a qualified Journeyman.

Considering that the stats for utility would presumably count all the office workers, meter readers, janitors, managers and a myriad of workers that never get closer to electricity than turning on their computer the numbers would be very misleading if one were to try and utilise these statistics to prove our trade has quite low deaths per 100,000 workers as compared to other industries where risk of a fatality is much higher.

Statistics are a useful tool, but don’t be sucked in by them. As they say, “Figures don’t lie, but liars figure.”

I would like to see statistics for accidental fatalities per 100,000 workers where ALL Journeyman Power Linemen and Apprentice Power Linemen only are counted. You can bet your boots that those statistics are a closely guarded secret if they even exist.

topgroove

07-12-2006, 01:44 PM

If Elliot keeps up with its present track record our industry may take over the #7 spot.

Alan Mac

07-14-2006, 11:55 AM

I would love to hear from still working linemen. WHAT makes the most impression for doing a job safely and by the numbers?[/QUOTE]

One of my problems as a lineman is convincing the engineers (who we all know, know squat about linework) of how to do things by the book. Best I can say is get out your safety rule book and read it. Highlight the bits that are important to your work. Make notes in the front so you know what page you need for the regular problems. Try to know the book better than them, get to that point and you can run rings around them most times.

Mac

dbrown20

07-14-2006, 07:19 PM

I would love to hear from still working linemen. WHAT makes the most impression for doing a job safely and by the numbers?

One of my problems as a lineman is convincing the engineers (who we all know, know squat about linework) of how to do things by the book. Best I can say is get out your safety rule book and read it. Highlight the bits that are important to your work. Make notes in the front so you know what page you need for the regular problems. Try to know the book better than them, get to that point and you can run rings around them most times.

Mac[/QUOTE]

I think one of the most detrimental things that management does is make insane rules. This leads to cynicism and contempt for the safety rules in general. Part of the equation is keeping it simple. The only safety rules that are followed where I work are the ones that cover your butt. Many of the perceived stupid ones are ignored on a regular basis.

Here's some we have. This just came out. No 4 KV will be gloved from the pole. Where this came from I have no idea. Some say it was to accomodate Davis Elliot in our area as they have so few hands that can do this sort of work. I don't know. Barricade a double insulated bucket truck when it is in the primary area.???? Have never figured this one out. A rope barricade is placed around the truck. At first I thought it was to keep the public from wandering under the hands aloft. No, it is to keep the ground hands from touching the truck while the people above are gloving primary.????? Had a second level supv. once who insisted for awhile that the grunt must wear rubber gloves while running the handline. ????? Our co. insists on many similar rules such as this. They try and give the impression that this work is extremely dangerous, but they have no qualms about 2 people going to work primary, with one in the bucket and one on the ground. Went to an apprentice school once as an instructor and was amazed when one apprentice from Harlingen,Tx. insisted that they were not allowed to use extendo sticks. Seems their little boss was against it. They recently had a capacitor blow up on a guy and burn him badly while replacing the fuse from a bucket using a switch stick. Seems they may rethink their policy now. This incident happened on old WTU's property and not in the Harlingen,Tx. area. Harlingen used to be a part of CP&L's property. All a part of AEP now. There are so many stupid rules that people ignore the important ones. Everyone knows that they cannot get through a typical day without violating some dumb rule. Higher level management insists on micro-managing and refuse to let their supervision do their jobl. However lower supervision is so rife with unqualified managers that I suppose higher level is paranoid. dbrown20

DuFuss

07-15-2006, 05:15 AM

When refuse and recyclable material collectors take away your trash, they risk traffic accidents and fatal injuries from explosions of hazardous materials. According to a University of Miami study, the leading cause of on-the-job fatalities for these workers is impatient motorists who try to pass the garbage truck and hit the driver.

That's a serious accident if they hit the driver! I would have thought the guys on the back were in more danger.

Seriously it's training not rules. OTJ training is great but some guys think they can move up too quick and get on a pole without basic knowledge of electricity. School book doesn't give you the experience you need. People need to slow down and develop good habits. If you follow your procedure, pay attention to what you're doing and use your thinker you should be ok. Don't be in a rush to move up. Take your time and learn all you can about linework. Pass on all knowledge to anyone who will listen but don't be a know it all, listen to others yourself. Be very aware of your surroundings. Look up down left right before doing things.

williek

07-15-2006, 07:43 AM

One of my problems as a lineman is convincing the engineers (who we all know, know squat about linework) of how to do things by the book. Best I can say is get out your safety rule book and read it. Highlight the bits that are important to your work. Make notes in the front so you know what page you need for the regular problems. Try to know the book better than them, get to that point and you can run rings around them most times.

Mac

I think one of the most detrimental things that management does is make insane rules. This leads to cynicism and contempt for the safety rules in general. Part of the equation is keeping it simple. The only safety rules that are followed where I work are the ones that cover your butt. Many of the perceived stupid ones are ignored on a regular basis.

Here's some we have. This just came out. No 4 KV will be gloved from the pole. Where this came from I have no idea. Some say it was to accomodate Davis Elliot in our area as they have so few hands that can do this sort of work. I don't know. Barricade a double insulated bucket truck when it is in the primary area.???? Have never figured this one out. A rope barricade is placed around the truck. At first I thought it was to keep the public from wandering under the hands aloft. No, it is to keep the ground hands from touching the truck while the people above are gloving primary.????? Had a second level supv. once who insisted for awhile that the grunt must wear rubber gloves while running the handline. ????? Our co. insists on many similar rules such as this. They try and give the impression that this work is extremely dangerous, but they have no qualms about 2 people going to work primary, with one in the bucket and one on the ground. Went to an apprentice school once as an instructor and was amazed when one apprentice from Harlingen,Tx. insisted that they were not allowed to use extendo sticks. Seems their little boss was against it. They recently had a capacitor blow up on a guy and burn him badly while replacing the fuse from a bucket using a switch stick. Seems they may rethink their policy now. This incident happened on old WTU's property and not in the Harlingen,Tx. area. Harlingen used to be a part of CP&L's property. All a part of AEP now. There are so many stupid rules that people ignore the important ones. Everyone knows that they cannot get through a typical day without violating some dumb rule. Higher level management insists on micro-managing and refuse to let their supervision do their jobl. However lower supervision is so rife with unqualified managers that I suppose higher level is paranoid. dbrown20[/QUOTE]

dbrown20

07-15-2006, 09:12 AM

That part about the engineers etc. is not a quote from me. dbrown20

LostArt

07-15-2006, 11:00 AM

That part about the engineers etc. is not a quote from me. dbrown20

Well, I was going to tease Danny about his mistake in his "quote" thingy, but I'm confused as to what WillieK had to say. Did he write anything? Or was he downthumbing you and Alan Mac?

Kinda hard to decipher............even for me!

Trampbag

07-15-2006, 12:11 PM

Management making all kinds of nonsensical rules is a lot cheaper than training linemen. Another advantage to the dumb rules is that no matter what, when there is an accident some rules would definitely be violated, thus it is always the lineman, or apprentice’s fault. :eek:

dbrown20

07-15-2006, 12:46 PM

Well, I was going to tease Danny about his mistake in his "quote" thingy, but I'm confused as to what WillieK had to say. Did he write anything? Or was he downthumbing you and Alan Mac?

Kinda hard to decipher............even for me!

Okay, Cracker I don't claim to be computer literate. dbrown20

LostArt

07-16-2006, 09:34 AM

Okay, Cracker I don't claim to be computer literate. dbrown20

Who ya be callin' cracker....Sugar Cakes???!! :p

I like to read these types of posts. I always wonder what both sides think. The most interesting ones are those that HAVE been on both sides of the fence. Those are actually real comparisons.............IMHO.

BTW, since the Boss has never been UnionManagement or just plain ole Union, I like to read those too. Ya never know, he might see that side.

dbrown20

07-16-2006, 09:44 AM

Who ya be callin' cracker....Sugar Cakes???!! :p

I like to read these types of posts. I always wonder what both sides think. The most interesting ones are those that HAVE been on both sides of the fence. Those are actually real comparisons.............IMHO.

BTW, since the Boss has never been UnionManagement or just plain ole Union, I like to read those too. Ya never know, he might see that side.

Saw a documentary once that talked of Florida crackers and Georgia crackers. I don't think the title belongs entirely to Georgians. dbrown20

LostArt

07-16-2006, 10:07 AM

Saw a documentary once that talked of Florida crackers and Georgia crackers. I don't think the title belongs entirely to Georgians. dbrown20

Heh. Naaah...........guess not. We pretty much have a lot in common and can basically get along fine UNTIL we meet over in Jacksonville once a year to see who is the better CRACKER! :D

NJlineman55

07-21-2006, 07:00 PM

Management making all kinds of nonsensical rules is a lot cheaper than training linemen. Another advantage to the dumb rules is that no matter what, when there is an accident some rules would definitely be violated, thus it is always the lineman, or apprentice’s fault. :eek:

Accept the basic safety rules that we know make our job safer, the other nonsence rules that the companies insist we must follow are to cover their ass and not necessarily yours. Dont get me wrong, most safety rules are of good use for lineman, but the companies are constantly making lineman sign off on everything they show you so if you get hurt, they can blame you and show how it was your fault no matter what the situation. Trampbag you are right on the money with this one as you usually are brother.